Next Is Now Week 1 - Four Keys to Conquering Change
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Joshua 6:1–21 Christian Standard Bible
1 Now Jericho was strongly fortified because of the Israelites—no one leaving or entering. 2 The Lord said to Joshua, “Look, I have handed Jericho, its king, and its best soldiers over to you. 3 March around the city with all the men of war, circling the city one time. Do this for six days. 4 Have seven priests carry seven ram’s-horn trumpets in front of the ark. But on the seventh day, march around the city seven times, while the priests blow the rams’ horns. 5 When there is a prolonged blast of the horn and you hear its sound, have all the troops give a mighty shout. Then the city wall will collapse, and the troops will advance, each man straight ahead.” 6 So Joshua son of Nun summoned the priests and said to them, “Take up the ark of the covenant and have seven priests carry seven rams’ horns in front of the ark of the Lord.” 7 He said to the troops, “Move forward, march around the city, and have the armed men go ahead of the ark of the Lord.” 8 After Joshua had spoken to the troops, seven priests carrying seven rams’ horns before the Lord moved forward and blew the rams’ horns; the ark of the Lord’s covenant followed them. 9 While the rams’ horns were blowing, the armed men went in front of the priests who blew the rams’ horns, and the rear guard went behind the ark. 10 But Joshua had commanded the troops, “Do not shout or let your voice be heard. Don’t let one word come out of your mouth until the time I say, ‘Shout!’ Then you are to shout.” 11 So the ark of the Lord was carried around the city, circling it once. They returned to the camp and spent the night there.
12 Joshua got up early the next morning. The priests took the ark of the Lord, 13 and the seven priests carrying seven rams’ horns marched in front of the ark of the Lord. While the rams’ horns were blowing, the armed men went in front of them, and the rear guard went behind the ark of the Lord. 14 On the second day they marched around the city once and returned to the camp. They did this for six days. 15 Early on the seventh day, they started at dawn and marched around the city seven times in the same way. That was the only day they marched around the city seven times. 16 After the seventh time, the priests blew the rams’ horns, and Joshua said to the troops, “Shout! For the Lord has given you the city. 17 But the city and everything in it are set apart to the Lord for destruction. Only Rahab the prostitute and everyone with her in the house will live, because she hid the messengers we sent. 18 But keep yourselves from the things set apart, or you will be set apart for destruction. If you take any of those things, you will set apart the camp of Israel for destruction and make trouble for it. 19 For all the silver and gold, and the articles of bronze and iron, are dedicated to the Lord and must go into the Lord’s treasury.” 20 So the troops shouted, and the rams’ horns sounded. When they heard the blast of the ram’s horns, the troops gave a great shout, and the wall collapsed. The troops advanced into the city, each man straight ahead, and they captured the city. 21 They completely destroyed everything in the city with the sword—every man and woman, both young and old, and every ox, sheep, and donkey.
Summary
For the next 7 weeks, we will be in a series called Next Is Now. We will be going through Joshua1:1-9. This week’s sermon was entitled Conquering Change.
The first point, PREPARATION, is found in verses 1 & 2. Contrary to what many think, Joshua was not a young man. At first glance it could seem that God picked Joshua at random, but that is far from the truth. In reality God had been preparing Joshua all along. His new found leadership, wasn’t really new. It appears as if he comes out of nowhere. We want to ask, “Where did God find this guy?” or “How did he get picked?” But Joshua started his leadership training early on in his life. You see, Joshua was born during Israel’s Egyptian bondage (Joshua 24:29). It was during this time that he undoubtedly learned some very valuable lessons under the harsh taskmasters of Egypt. He probably learned submission, obedience, and hard work. These lessons would follow him everywhere he went. We’re told in Exodus 24:13 and 32:17 that Joshua was right by Moses’s side as his minister—serving in the shadows but fulfilling his life’s calling at that stage in his life. Joshua was always undergoing training, because God knew he would use Joshua at this moment in time. The important lesson here is that Joshua did not become a great leader overnight. It took years of serving, obeying, honoring, and laboring in the tasks that were before him at those moments. It wasn’t always glamorous, but it was his calling.When we face transitions and seasons of uncertainty many times how we have let God prepare us will shape how we move forward into what he has prepared for us. Conquering change isn’t cultivated by who we are on stage for God, but rather who we are in the shadows for God. Also it is worth noting that Joshua’s preparation allowed him to trust God when it was time to move forward. God didn’t say, “Moses is dead, so take some time to work the crowd and gain favor.” Instead God said, “Now you and all the people are to prepare to cross…”Point number two was PROMISE and it is found in verses 3 & 4. When we face seasons of uncertainty and change, we can rest on the promises of God. Here in this opening passage of Joshua, God declares his intentions and relates them to his character-to his covenant faithfulness. As we see in the following verses, God promised the land, to overcome their enemies, and to be with Joshua as he was with Moses. I realize this may seem somewhat abstract, or overly spiritual, but hear me out. Too many times we face uncertainty and change, and we forget the greatest weapon we have-God’s promises! Throughout the Israelites’ journey through the wilderness, it becomes apparent that they have terrible short-term memory. God says He wants to free the Hebrew people from Egypt. How could He possibly do that? He sends ten plagues. Later, when they are free, they come to the Red Sea, but it looks like a dead end! How could God possibly take them any further? He parts the Red Sea. Not long after this, the people are in the wilderness and have no food, so they complain about God not taking care of them. God’s response? He drops food from the sky. How could you continue to doubt God after seeing all these miraculous provisions? How will God take care of you? The same way He did the last time! Yet, we so often forget. Trust in God, when it boils down to it, is remembering His provision in the past. (Resting in the promises of God, is remembering His past faithfulness.)
Our next point is PRESENCE and it is found in verse 5. The presence of God with us in times of uncertainty is an extension of his promise to us. His promise to never leave us nor forsake us. Sometimes when we are going through change we can be tempted to feel alone, to feel overlooked, and this can lead to feeling overwhelmed. We need to remind our feelings of the facts. Just like God said to Joshua, he says this to us as well, “I will be with you just as I was with Moses. I will not leave you or abandon you.” (Psalm 23, I will fear no evil for you are with me) (confidence that is brought when the presence is known)
In verses 6-9 we find our final point, PRACTICE. Ultimately preparation, promise, and presence should lead to practice. We show that we really believe God’s promises only when we begin to obey his commands. Here in these verses God encourages Joshua to be “strong and courageous” three times. This is on top of three times in the book of Deuteronomy. It seems that now that Joshua was on the verge of crossing the Jordan his knees might have been knocking a little bit. There Is no Moses to fall back on. There is a promise ahead, but he’s going there with an untried army who tend to be pretty fickle. So what was Joshua’s practice? Obedience. Joshua's obedience would come in handy,as he would now have to completely obey and trust God to lead a very difficult group of people. God told Joshua that he would lead the people to cross the river (Joshua 1:2–4), overcome their enemy (v. 5), and divvy out the land (v. 6). What’s interesting is that God didn’t give any details as to how Joshua would do this. God knew Joshua would obey and trust because Joshua was already in the habit of doing that. Could God make the same assumption about us? We see three areas that Joshua was called to practice as he conquered change:1. Personal Courage2. Personal Faith-the courage we are called to display can’t simply come from inside of us, it must be applied to us. There is a divine origin,which is the truth of the divine word. What is personal faith? Devotion to practicing all that God has taught us. (v7)3. Personal Action-If we want to know God’s promises in practice and experience their growing potential in our lives, we must obey his commands.
Discussion
How has the Lord PREPARED you for the Here and Now? Explain
How did the Lord PREPARE you for transitions in your life?
How have the Lord’s PROMISES helped you as you face change in your life? Explain
Have you felt the Lord’s PRESENCE in your life as you experience change? Explain
Give an example of a time you PRACTICED obedience to the Lord during a time of change?
Announcements
A BIG thanks to all of you that came out to serve at the Bert Ogden Arena for Easter In The Valley.
The Lord has blessed us with two new CG’s in Alice!
We will be scheduling a CG Leaders meeting soon, more information coming soon!
Pastor Isauro Medina
Isauro.medina@bt.church
Cell: (956) 984-9380
